MOLDOVA: TENTH ANNUAL TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS (TIP) REPORT

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 37 CHISINAU 000083



SENSITIVE

SIPDIS



DEPT FOR G/TIP, G, INL, DRL/AE, PRM, EUR/UMB



STATE PLEASE PASS TO USAID, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE,

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY, DEPARTMENT OF

LABOR, AND DEPARTMENT OF TREASURY



E.O. 12958: N/A

TAGS: ELAB, KTIP, KCRM, KFRD, KWMN, PGOV, PHUM,

PREF, SMIG, KMCA, MD

SUBJECT: MOLDOVA: TENTH ANNUAL TRAFFICKING IN

PERSONS (TIP) REPORT



REFS: A. STATE 2094, B. 09 Chisinau 0898, C. 09

Chisinau 0877, D. 08 Chisinau 1277



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1. (SBU) Post's responses to Ref A's questions are

given below. As reported in both the TIP Interim

Assessment (Ref B) and (Ref C),the new Government

of Moldova (GOM),which assumed power in

September, is taking charge of the TIP issue at

the highest level, and in a manner that has

increased cooperation between the cabinet

ministries and other agencies in the GOM. The

Prime Minister appointed the Deputy Prime Minister

and Minister of Foreign Affairs and European

Integration Iurie Leanca to chair the National

Coordinating Committee on Trafficking in Persons

(NCCTIP). Leanca oversees twelve ministries and

agencies on the NCCTIP. Five ministries (Foreign

Affairs, Interior, Justice, Education, and Labor

and Social Protection) have assigned officers, at

the division head level to the NCCTIP Secretariat,

which for the first time now has been given full-

time staff and office space. The Ministry of

Justice (MOJ) and the Prosecutor General's Office

(PGO) also have been working to improve the

collection of statistics. They are steadily

moving file records from hard copy to electronic

format, placing more data on GOM websites, and

more strictly monitoring TIP case management in

the field. The GOM has attempted to address

problems in reporting by initiating a consolidated

report on government actions in combating TIP.

The new GOM also launched a reinvestigation in

November 2009 of former Center for Combating

Trafficking in Persons (CCTIP) Deputy Director Ion

Bejan, who was dismissed in 2006 amidst

allegations of complicity in TIP. Both law

enforcement agencies and NGOs report that over the

last decade, the number of trafficking victims has

steadily declined, so that the number of victims

in 2009 is now approximately half of what it was

in 2000. This decline can be attributed to

greater awareness on the part of potential victims

as a result of vast public awareness programs

conducted as well as the shifting nature of

criminal patterns. The pattern of trafficking has

changed, so that victims are more frequently

recruited abroad, paid small amounts of money,

allowed to contact their families and are given

greater freedom of movement, which allows victims

the feeling that their actions have been

undertaken voluntarily. According to

International Organization for Migration (IOM),

the average duration of exploitation for sexual

services decreased from one to two years to four

months maximum.



2. (SBU) Ref A Question 25 A. What is (are) the

source(s) of available information on trafficking

in persons? What plans are in place (if any) to

undertake further documentation of human

trafficking? How reliable are these sources?



3. (SBU) Sources of available information are

reports directly from the Government of Moldova

(GOM),and from NGOs such as La Strada, and the

International Organization for Migration (IOM).

The new government has initiated increased TIP

reporting, and has been responsive to our requests

for information. Data from these sources are

trustworthy, although often difficult to compare

because they use different categories of

information. The GOM has significantly improved

its organization of data in the second half of

2008 and 2009 to include some information on

numbers sentenced for trafficking and related

offences. See paras. 5-11 for the latest update.



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4. (SBU) The GOM's record keeping on criminal

cases has improved this past year. Statistics

about trafficking are limited and much of what is

reported outside of official channels is

conjecture. Official reporting has been

complicated by the fact that it is difficult to

obtain coordinated, government-wide statistics,

though steps are being taken to address this

problem. Thus far, the most accurate reporting

appears to be in the area of convictions.

Information about prosecutions has improved and

the government has now begun to regularly provide

us with the TIP data we are seeking.



5. (SBU) Although individual GOM ministries and

agencies are improving their data collection, the

government-wide coordination of data remains a

difficulty. The CCTIP keeps statistics on cases

opened and transmitted to prosecutors. The PGO

keeps statistics on prosecutions and judgments

which are delivered by courts, and which may be

subject to appeal. The Ministry of Justice (MOJ)

keeps statistics on irrevocable judgments that

have been finally executed. This system reflects

the national criminal justice system.



6. (SBU) To help ameliorate this problem, Post has

submitted a Training or Technical Assistance

Request to G/TIP. The request seeks experts who

will visit Chisinau to train GOM agencies to

present statistics in cascading matrices through

stages of the penal process. That is, at each

stage, from the opening of an investigation to

final incarceration, how many proceed to the next

stage, and how many do not, and for what reasons.

The need is particularly acute at the final stage,

that of identifying how many go to trial for

trafficking offenses, how many are convicted (for

what particular offenses),how many "drop out"

(because of acquittal, reclassification of charges

etc.),what sentences are given, and which

individuals are in jail and for how long (minus

amnesties and other get-out-of-jail processes.)



7. (SBU) The PGO's Info-PG system contains general

information on prosecutors' activity for all

categories of offences at each stage of criminal

prosecution (receipt and examination of a

complaint of a criminal offence, prosecution,

trial). This informational system includes

sections on TIP and child trafficking offences.

The information is updated monthly by prosecutors.



8. (SBU) Concurrently, an electronic data base,

Procuratura on-line (PGO on-line),launched

through an order of the Prosecutor General in

October 2008, is under construction and is

expected to be operational by the end of 2010.

Data for this system are being collected by

prosecutors, to include each decision taken, for

all categories of offences, beginning with the

receipt of a complaint to the stage of serving a

sentence. Since the data base will include

records with comprehensive information on the

evolution of each criminal case, it should solve

the problems of government-wide record keeping.

The system is projected to be operational by the

end of 2010.



9. (SBU) The PGO also has a mechanism of data

collection specifically focused on TIP cases.

Since October 2006, prosecutors from all PGO

sections, in territorial and specialized offices

forward monthly reports on TIP cases and the

evolution of criminal prosecution to the Section



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for Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in

Persons in the PGO, which generalizes all

information and forwards it monthly to NCCTIP and

the Supreme Security Council. Data coordination

between the CCTIP and the PGO will soon be

improved by an Embassy-installed secure IT system

at the CCTIP, which will be accessed by the PGO's

Section for Prevention and Combating of

Trafficking in Persons located at the CCTIP. The

new system is expected to be completed by February

2010.



10. (SBU) While some of the weaknesses are

attributable to the nebulous nature of

trafficking, illegal migration, and lawful

migration, the GOM's byzantine organizational

structure has meant that multiple agencies

continued to use separate systems of data

collection: as noted above, the CCTIP keeps

statistics on cases opened and transmitted to

prosecutors; the Prosecutor's office keeps

statistics on judgments/decisions delivered by

courts (which may later be subject to appeal); the

Ministry of Justice keeps statistics on judgments

executed. In addition, bringing TIP cases from an

initial investigation to conviction and penalty

often requires long periods of time, principally

because of a three-level appeal mechanism provided

by the Code of Criminal Procedure. This means

that judicial decisions do not reflect a real-time

percentage of cases opened in the current year;

for example, the case of the Turkish trafficker

sentenced to 23 years in 2008 was opened in 2004.

This reflects the organization of the national

criminal justice system, but can cause some

confusion when reviewing numbers. The government

has attempted to correct these data reporting

problems and in 2009 began issuing a consolidated

report on trafficking.



11. (SBU) Since different agencies report their

own investigative records, often with only

statistics and excluding names of suspects, the

GOM is unable to determine accurately the

percentage of eventual convictions such

investigations yield. Poor reporting does not

reflect lack of will, but widespread

administrative incapacity. A new PGO electronic

system (see para. 8) is expected to improve the

data collection mechanism.



12. (SBU) Figures for the total number of

trafficking victims can only be estimated. As

many victims are reluctant to report their

experiences, the common NGO assumption is that as

many as 70 percent of cases may go unreported.

The IOM's figure of 2,602 victims assisted during

the ten-year period between 2000 and 2009 would

thus translate to a total estimate of some 8,700

victims of sexual trafficking or labor

exploitation over that decade. (Both law

enforcement and NGOs report that the number of

victims per year has steadily declined over the

past decade. The number of victims in 2008 and

2009 was less than half those reported in 2000 and

2001. In its 2009 report, the CCTIP states that

the number of victims has declined.)



13. (SBU) Information on trafficking from IOM was

perhaps the most reliable as to the numbers and

demographics of victims. In May 2007, the

International Center for Migration Policy

Development (ICMPD) conducted a survey on anti-

trafficking efforts in Moldova, following which

the Ministry for Social Protection, Family, and

Child (MSP),now the Ministry of Labor, Social



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Protection and Family (MLSP),assumed

responsibility for the national victim-centred

database. In December 2007, the ICMPD delivered a

computer and software for use by the National

Coordinating Unit (NCU) in the MSP, which will

coordinate all data collection for the National

Referral System (NRS). In 2009, the MLSP's role

as a central integrator of the victim-centred

database has increased. MLSP, NCU

representatives, IOM and UNFPA representatives

agreed to develop and incorporate the module of

victim-centered database as part of the data

collection and management function within the NRS

to be promoted through the Government decision

together with the concept of domestic violence

(developed in 2008 and approved in September 2009)

and child protection (developed in 2007-2008).



14. (SBU) Consolidation and extension of the NRS

in 2009 has improved data collection on

trafficking victims. The NCU, with the MLSP,

maintains a temporary data base of NRS

beneficiaries and collects data from case managers

of multi-disciplinary raion (district) units,

NGOs, and other actors involved, which submit

identification forms or social surveys on TIP

victims and potential victims. Based on the data

collected, NCU refers victims for further

assistance. In 2009, the number of victims (133)

referred through the NRS increased substantially

compared to the 84 referred in 2008.



15. (SBU) The CCTIP and the PGO kept records of

the trafficking cases they processed. The OSCE

kept comprehensive information on organizations

providing assistance. The Center for Prevention

of Trafficking in Women (CPTW) also provided

information on repatriated victims and legal

services that have been provided to them, but this

information was sporadic. Terre des Hommes

Foundation provided information on child victims

repatriated through its program. OSCE, the

American Bar Association's Central European and

Eurasian Law Initiative (ABA-CEELI),and the

Embassy's Resident Legal Advisor (RLA) remained

the best sources for information on legislative

reform in the trafficking area.



16. (SBU) Ref A Question 25 B: Is the country a

country of origin, transit, and/or destination for

men, women, or children subjected to conditions of

commercial sexual exploitation, forced or bonded

to labor, or other slave-like conditions? Are

citizens or residents of the country subjected to

such trafficking conditions within the country?

If so, does this internal trafficking occur in

territory outside of the government's control

(e.g. in a civil war situation)? From where are

people recruited or from where do they migrate

prior to being subjected to these exploitative

conditions? To what other countries are people

trafficked and for what purposes? Provide, where

possible, numbers or estimates for each group of

trafficking victims. Have there been any changes

in the TIP situation since the last TIP Report

(e.g. changes in destinations)?



17. (SBU) Moldova is primarily a country of

origin. As Ref B notes, trafficking per se occurs

mostly outside the borders of the country, after

potential victims are lured abroad (mostly by

friends or relatives),or make the decision

themselves to accept what they know to be high-

risk employment, or simply go overseas in search

of work. Increasingly, we hear reports of a new

pattern of trafficking in which, instead of the



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old pattern where traffickers lured girls abroad,

victims who have gone abroad voluntarily to seek

employment are entrapped when they arrive

elsewhere and are approached with a job offer. In

such cases no criminal actions take place within

Moldova, and the entire crime takes place in the

destination country. Thus in this new trafficking

pattern, there is no one in Moldova who can be

prosecuted for these crimes, even though the

victims were Moldovan citizens.



18. (SBU) Moldova remained a source country for

trafficked persons, particularly women and girls.

It is also to a lesser extent a transit country,

and there are some reported cases of internal

trafficking, often of girls from rural areas, to

the capital Chisinau. Only isolated cases of

trafficking to Moldova as a destination country

have been reported.



19. (SBU) Moldovan victims are primarily

trafficked to Russia and countries of the Middle

East. According to IOM statistics, the main

destination countries are: Russia (25 percent),

Turkey (17 percent),United Arab Emirates (UAE)(17

percent) and Ukraine (8.8 percent). Although

according to published statistical data most

victims were trafficked to Russia in 2009, IOM

experts state that Turkey remained the leading

destination country as in 2008. They explained

the discrepancy as a result of non-reporting by

TIP victims in Turkey and deliberate under-

reporting of numbers by Turkish authorities.

Turkey remains the leading destination country

partly because of the large number of non-stop

flights between Chisinau and Istanbul, and the

availability of airport visas upon arrival for

Moldovan citizens.



20. (SBU) IOM reported 159 TIP victims for 2009,

of whom 56.6 percent were victims of sexual

exploitation and 27.7 percent victims of labor

exploitation. IOM reported an increase of labor

exploitation cases concerning women, men and

children working on farms in Ukraine and Russia.

IOM reported that Moldova continued to emerge as a

hub for trafficking because of the social

vulnerability of potential victims, corruption,

the unstable border situation, and the ease with

which real or fake documents can be produced. Sex

tourism exists, but no statistics are available.

Because of ease of travel, and the efforts of

particular travel organizations, clients usually

came from Turkey.



21. (SBU) Child sex tourism does not appear to be

a serious problem in Moldova. Post is unaware of

any, small or large, commercial endeavors which

involve child sex crimes save one. Post is

following an ongoing investigation between a

Western European country and the GOM involving the

distribution of child pornography via the

Internet. While there is no confirmation that

these images were produced in Moldova, the

supposition seems reasonable since the target of

this investigation lives and works in Moldova.

Current information suggests this person acted

alone and is not a member of an organized crime

network. The governments of Moldova and the

Western European country are investigating this

possibility and our Embassy remains ready to

assist.



22. (SBU) Occasionally Post becomes aware of cases

of pedophiles traveling to Moldova individually to

exploit children. Such a case yielded a U.S.



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conviction in 2007. Post remains involved in

investigating one ongoing case and believes the

GOM would immediately communicate to the Embassy

any further cases which might become known.



23. (SBU) While Post has seen several instances of

children being smuggled outside of Moldova in the

past few months, all of these incidents were

humanitarian family-reunification cases in which

Moldovan parents, working illegally outside of

Moldova, had arranged for their children to be

transported to them. None of these cases appear

to be utilizing child sex tourism networks. Post

remains vigilant in investigating the possibility

of trafficking in Moldovan children.



24. (SBU) Ref A Question 25 C. To what kind of

conditions are the trafficking victims subjected?



25. (SBU) Ref D noted that conditions of servitude

have improved. We are witnessing a new pattern in

trafficking. Increasingly, young women are

"persuaded" into prostitution as part of a debt-

bondage scheme, not beaten, have relative freedom

of movement, are permitted to keep some of the

money they earn, and are allowed to telephone

home. They frequently can purchase their own

freedom by recruiting a friend or relative to take

their place. There is an aura of having made a

"voluntary" decision, and so the victims do not

see themselves as trafficking victims. IOM

reported that only two victims out of 158 assisted

in 2008 and only six out of 159 in 2009 self-

identified themselves as victims. Many victims do

not know their basic human rights and do not

realize they were actually sold and exploited.

IOM reported a shorter term of exploitation as one

of the trends in 2009. According to IOM, in

comparison the previous years, the average

duration of exploitation for sexual services

decreased from one to two years to four months

maximum. Men, offered apparently legitimate jobs

and working in the construction industry, are

frequently underpaid, or not paid at all, and

threatened with exposure to the police if they

fail to cooperate. However, they tend not to

identify themselves as victims and thus refuse the

psychological and other assistance available to

them through the Chisinau Assistance and

Protection Center (CAPC). They tend to treat the

trafficking experience as failed migration and

rush to find a new job in order to provide for

their families.



26. (SBU) Ref A Question 25 D. Vulnerability to

TIP: Are certain groups of persons more at risk of

human trafficking (e.g. women and children, boys

versus girls, certain ethnic groups, refugees,

IDPs, etc.)? If so, please specify the type of

exploitation for which these groups are most at

risk.



27. (SBU) According to IOM and La Strada

interlocutors in ref D, young women with poor

educational levels, low intelligence, and no job

prospects, living in bleak, economically depressed

rural areas, often experiencing domestic violence,

are the most vulnerable. The MLSP reported that

90 percent of TIP victims had experienced domestic

violence. Many of the trafficked women were

graduates from boarding schools (orphanages) and

thus do not have families, housing or support.

They tend to have low levels of education, are

naove and thus become easy targets for recruiters.



28. (SBU) Ref A Question 25 E. Traffickers and



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Their Methods: Who are the

traffickers/exploiters? Are they independent

business people? Small or family-based crime

groups? Large international organized crime

syndicates? What methods are used to gain direct

access to victims? For example, are the

traffickers recruiting victims through lucrative

job offers? Are victims sold by their families,

or approached by friends of friends? Are victims

"self-presenting" (approaching the exploiter

without the involvement of a recruiter or

transporter)? If recruitment or transportation is

involved, what methods are used to recruit or

transport victims (e.g., are false documents being

used)? Are employment, travel, and tourism

agencies or marriage brokers involved with or

fronting for traffickers or crime groups to

traffic individuals?



29. (SBU) Perpetrators of TIP in Moldova can be

divided into two groups: direct perpetrators and

agents of trafficking. Direct perpetrators are

criminals who themselves forcefully or

fraudulently compel individuals to work in

conditions of involuntary labor. We know of

recruitment in Moldova which involves single men

persuading individual women to travel aboard for

work in the commercial sex industry. This

recruitment becomes trafficking when the women,

through fraud or compulsion exercised by the

recruiter, travel and then work under duress.

Psychological manipulation and exploitation of

vulnerability are also used to recruit victims.

Presumably, the same technique might be used to

recruit persons directly for other types of labor.

We are unable to determine the extent or direction

of this trafficking method, as existing reporting

is anecdotal, and we cannot tell whether

trafficking for eventual work in the sex trade is

the most common goal of this method. If the

victim chooses to leave Moldova willingly to work

in the sex industry, then no crime has taken place

within Moldova's borders.



30. (SBU) Also present is agency trafficking, in

which a firm or individual in a foreign country

engages someone to recruit multiple victims in

Moldova. These agents are often perpetrators of

"happy trafficking," the phenomenon of friends or

acquaintances recruiting persons in Moldova in

exchange for release from the agent's own peonage

in the other country. In a typical scenario, an

employment company in a foreign country would

charge a current trafficking victim with returning

to Moldova to recruit one or more victims. After

being convinced that payment and terms are

adequate, those future victims move to the agent's

former country, where they are then compelled to

work. In exchange, the agent receives release

from debts owed or other considerations.



31. (SBU) Major transnational organized crime

syndicates do not appear to be significant, direct

actors in TIP in Moldova. In the early part of

this decade, the GOM initiated a broad effort

against organized crime. It appears that the most

nefarious forms of organized crime--trafficking in

persons and dangerous goods, kidnapping for

ransom, and extortion through violence--are far

less common in Moldova than in neighboring

countries. While Moldovan citizens might fall

victim to organized crime trafficking networks

outside of their country, such organizations do

not appear to be operating in force in Moldova.



32. (SBU) An important side note here is the



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possible use of online social networking sites.

Awareness and use of the Internet among young

Moldovans appears high; information technology is

a mandatory subject at the high school level.

Solitary persons, or possibly organized groups,

seeking to recruit potential trafficking victims

could use these sites to make contacts with

Moldovans without ever entering the country. This

method could be available to both direct

perpetrators and agents of trafficking. Given the

lack of direct evidence, we can make no

conclusions regarding the extent of online

recruiting.



33. (SBU) Ref A Question 26 A. Does the

government acknowledge that human trafficking is a

problem in the country? If not, why not?



34. (SBU) The Government's stated, official

approach toward anti-trafficking efforts is one of

strong commitment. Foreign governments, NGOs, and

the international press mandate that the GOM make

public statements conceding a serious TIP problem.

Former President Voronin made public statements

about the government's commitment to fighting

trafficking. Moldova's new government, in place

since late September, has moved quickly to push

reforms and address the problem of TIP. The new

Prime Minister Vlad Filat chaired the GOM's first

meeting of the NCCTIP on November 9. This meeting

included cabinet ministers in charge of social,

legal, and judicial matters. The Prime

Minister demanded concrete action in investigating

and opening cases against traffickers, and

appointed Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of

Foreign Affairs and European Integration Iurie

Leanca to chair the NCCTIP. We therefore expect

the GOM's anti-TIP effort promises to be even

higher-profile and better coordinated than

previously: it is a clear priority of the Prime

Minister, is headed by a senior cabinet member,

and includes all relevant ministers.



35. (SBU) Our meetings with Moldovan officials are

consistently marked by their expressed concern

about reducing TIP. No one wants their citizens

to suffer as victims of such crimes. The GOM

works officially to address TIP, yet existing

societal flaws such as corruption and a lack of

resources can undermine these efforts.



36. (SBU) Many police contacts, including sources

outside of the capital, state that the GOM's

stress on the importance of counter-TIP efforts

comes at the expense of other, often TIP-related

law enforcement efforts. For example, domestic

abuse and alcoholism, which appear disturbingly

common throughout Moldova, are difficult to

investigate because authorities lack vehicles to

transport officers to crime scenes expeditiously.

GOM efforts to make the broad, societal

improvements which would address the root causes

of TIP, according to these sources, are inhibited

by the skewing of resource allocations to TIP-

related activities.



37. (SBU) Corruption is rampant throughout

Moldova. We are unable to determine to what

extent this problem facilitates TIP. It would

appear to, at least, make the practice easier and,

at worst, to act as a strong subsidy to it.



38. (SBU) Ref A Question 26 B. Which government

agencies are involved in efforts to combat sex and

labor trafficking --including forced labor--and,

which agency, if any, has the lead in these



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efforts?



39. (SBU) We are seeing some progress towards the

GOM's assumption of responsibilities which are

within the sole purview of the government:

investigations, arrests, inter-agency cooperation,

and case management. However, prosecution

efforts, especially those which should be directed

at high officials allegedly complicit in

trafficking, continue to lag. At the same time,

given the changing nature of trafficking

recruitment, we cannot be sure that there are any

high-level officials involved in the trafficking

effort. All GOM actions in combating TIP are

institutionally centered at the CCTIP, the U.S.

Government-funded GOM lead agency in anti-TIP

efforts. In 2008, CCTIP was restructured, with

eight officers assigned to regional coordination

centers in the north and south of the country. In

each raion, one or two police officers are

detailed to report to CCTIP coordination officers.

The GOM individual responsible for coordinating

TIP-reduction efforts is Deputy Prime Minister,

Minister of Foreign Affairs and European

Integration Iurie Leanca.



40. (SBU) The government, at the national and

local level, used the National Referral Mechanism

to coordinate prosecution, protection and

prevention. Government-appointed social workers

and teachers, working with religious leaders, NGOs

and National Referral system multi-disciplinary

teams, were involved in prevention of trafficking

and giving assistance to victims. In mid-2007,

the Ministry of Social Protection, Family, and

Child (MSP) began to co-chair the monthly

Technical Coordination Meetings (TCMs) with the

OSCE Mission. At TCMs, NGOs, the government,

international organizations, and foreign embassies

make presentations on their work and coordinate

efforts.



41. (SBU) At the end of 2006, the MFAEI opened

information centers on trafficking in persons in

the Moldovan embassies abroad, appointed counter-

trafficking focal points at Moldovan diplomatic

missions in major destination countries, and

provided training for these individuals. On

December 17, 2009, the MFAIE inaugurated the

ministry's Call Center, which provides information

on urgent consular issues involving victims

overseas, and receives both domestic and

international calls. Consular officials being

stationed overseas receive training on identifying

victims and working with them.



42. (SBU) Efforts abroad focus on identifying

victims and providing services, including

repatriation of victims who seek assistance.

Victims whose passports have been confiscated may

still be repatriated, if the consular officer can

identify them as Moldovan citizens. The National

Committee has the lead role in reviewing the

government's anti-trafficking efforts, and it

continued to hold meetings, which were open to

NGOs and the international community.

Representatives from various ministries, raions,

and civil society make presentations on their

efforts at these meetings.



43. (SBU) In December 2009, the GOM changed the

structure of the NCCTIP to include representatives

of ten ministries (MOI, MFAEI, MLSP, MOJ, Ministry

of Culture, Ministry of Health, Ministry of

Education, Ministry of Informational Technologies

and Communications, Ministry of Youth and Sports,



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Ministry of Finance),two government agencies

(Border Guards Service, and Intelligence and

Information Service),the PGO, the Secretary of

the Supreme Security Council, and the Bashkan

(Governor) of the Gagauaz Autonomous Region. To

increase the coordinating role of the NCCTIP,

including data collection and reporting, a

permanent Secretariat of the Committee was also

established. The Secretariat is located in the

main government building, and employs a secretary

(Ministry of Interior employee) and four detached

specialists at the department head level from four

other ministries (MFAEI, MOJ, MLSP, and

Education). Information on GOM anti-trafficking

efforts is posted on the Ministry of Interior

website, and disseminated in the print media, and

on national and regional television and radio.



44. (SBU) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and

European Integration, the Intelligence and

Security Service, the

Ministry of Interior, the Border Guard Service,

and the National Migration Bureau are required to

take necessary actions to prohibit the presence in

Moldova of foreign citizens and stateless persons,

when there is accurate information that they are

traffickers in human beings. Also, the Ministry

of Foreign Affairs and European Integration

organizes and participates in negotiations aimed

at signing international treaties with other

states and international organizations in the

field of trafficking in human beings, as well as

through granting assistance and protection to

trafficked persons abroad.



45. (SBU) The Border Guard Service is required to

prevent and combat trafficking in human beings

through the prevention, detection, and deterrence

of attempted border crossings of the state border

by traffickers in human beings, as well as illegal

border crossings of the state border by victims of

trafficking in human beings.



46. (SBU) The MLSP, with the assistance of the

National Employment Agency, publishes information

on the situation in the labor market, vocational

training programs, and incentives for employment,

by offering labor mediation services, professional

information and counseling, vocational orientation

and training, as well as consultations and

assistance in starting a business activity. The

MLSP coordinates the NRS's provision of

protection, and assistance for TIP victims at the

state level.



47. (SBU) The Ministry of Education, in

cooperation with other interested ministries,

local public administration authorities, and non-

governmental organizations working in this field,

develops educational and training programs for

teachers, parents, children, and at-risk groups

aimed at eliminating all the causes and conditions

that foster trafficking in human beings,

especially in women and children.



48. (SBU) The Ministry of Informational

Technologies and Communications ensures the

identification of victims of trafficking in human

beings and issues residence permits or identity

cards to victims of trafficking who are foreign

citizens or stateless persons, when their stay in

Moldova is necessary because of their personal

circumstances or their participation in criminal

proceedings against the trafficker. We have no

record of any such cases occurring in 2008 or in

2009.



CHISINAU 00000083 011.2 OF 037







49. (SBU) The Ministry of Economy, together with

other interested ministries and departments,

develops and implements socio-economic programs

aimed at the removal of the economic causes and

conditions encouraging illegal migration,

including trafficking in human beings.



50. (SBU) Ref A Question 26 C. What are the

limitations on the government's ability to address

these problems in practice? For example, is

funding for police or other institutions

inadequate? Is overall corruption a problem? Does

the government lack the resources to aid victims?



51. (SBU) If the solution to trafficking in

Moldova is stopping the massive flow of labor

migration, then providing greater job prospects at

home so that young people do not seek to leave the

country looking for jobs overseas and greater

economic development is the answer. If the

solution is sought in enhanced law enforcement,

then reform of the law enforcement system could

result in better prosecutions. Salaries for

Moldovan law enforcement and judiciary officials

are low, not only making them vulnerable to

corruption, but in many cases compelling them to

seek extra sources of income. The typical

officer, with three family members to care for and

a home to keep, cannot provide for his family on

his official salary. We are aware of this

widespread corruption but are uncertain to its

true extent or nature. Sources have reported that

officers generally avoid the most offensive and

most egregious types of bribery, out of some sense

of integrity and a fear of reprisal, but our

knowledge about this phenomenon is limited.



52. (SBU) Existing law enforcement resources are

also a problem. The CCTIP, for example, was

founded with U.S. assistance, but was to be

maintained by the GOM. However, three years after

the formal establishment of the Center, the

facility receives only salaries, space,

stationery, a limited amount of office supplies,

and fuel from the government. All other ongoing

assistance (some office supplies, vehicles,

cellular phones, other equipment, and training) is

provided in kind by the Embassy, and occasionally,

other donors.



53. (SBU) Other law enforcement entities with

direct involvement in counter-trafficking efforts

are even less adequately equipped. The Ministry

of Interior's Department of Operative Services

conducts the majority of felony-level

investigations in Moldova. Operative Services

relies heavily on nine vehicles donated by the

USG, and is often lacking even the most

rudimentary financial support. For example, when

Operative Services sought to infiltrate a

nefarious goods trafficking ring and required USD

5,000 to carry out a buy/bust operation, they

solicited foreign embassies for assistance.



54. (SBU) Sex trafficking and conventional labor

trafficking continue despite Moldovan law

enforcement efforts. The conventional wisdom is

that trafficking thrives in Moldova because of the

poor economic conditions. Despite the willingness

of some, if not most, Moldovan officers to accept

bribes, trafficking continues not because the

police are corrupt or incompetent, but because a

continuing supply of victims is willing to

voluntarily travel overseas in search of

employment.



CHISINAU 00000083 012.2 OF 037







55. (SBU) In sex trafficking and trafficking for

labor, most of the fraud which persuades persons

to travel to other countries does occur in Moldova

itself. However, the coercion which sends victims

into peonage or forced labor is subsequent to the

fraud, and is usually carried out abroad. Since

the fraud is not perpetrated on a visible level,

such as in the mid-1990s when women were violently

and coercively taken out of Moldova, it is now

more difficult for Moldovan law enforcement to

investigate. The NGO La Strada expressed its

concern about investigations and prosecution of

trafficking for labor exploitation. It reported

that, unlike trafficking for sexual exploitation,

labor exploitation cases very often are

investigated and prosecuted as organized illegal

migration and fraud. In cases when CIS countries

appear as countries of destination, investigation

of trafficking cases is likely to be approached as

organized illegal migration and/or fraud. If EU

and other countries are involved, cases of

trafficking for labor are more likely to be

approached as such.



56. (SBU) Today's direct traffickers are not

shackling women and putting them in buses against

their will. Instead, they are approaching girls

abroad who left voluntarily, finding them lost and

bewildered getting off the bus in Turkey and offer

a job or a place to stay. Alternatively, they

approach girls at nightclubs and strip bars,

buying those women drinks, taking them to dinner,

and slowly persuading them to come with them to

Dubai or Nicosia, ostensibly to work as waitresses

(or other seemingly innocuous positions). These

direct recruiters make false promises and thus

commit fraud, but as lone wolves who might come to

Moldova once every few years, they are more

difficult for Moldovan law enforcement to detect.



57. (SBU) Agent traffickers are equally difficult

to investigate and prosecute. Often they are

friends or relatives (increasingly women) who send

a contact to a foreign country, where that person

is then subject to abuse. Investigating and

prosecuting a friend who misrepresents working

conditions to an acquaintance is made possible

since that friend is likely Moldovan and resident

in Moldova. But these are cases which end with

the arrest of that individual low-level Moldovan.

The true perpetrators of the most violent aspects

of the crimes are not in Moldova. They are the

construction firm or nightclub owner in Tel Aviv,

on behalf of whom the Moldovan recruiter is

working. The leader of the enterprise is a

suspect in another country, not a criminal

operator based in Chisinau. Similarly, law

enforcement can infiltrate a travel agency which

misrepresents factory jobs in Istanbul, but unless

that company is tied to a large organization, the

success ends with the prosecution of the travel

agency. In those cases where the entire

recruitment takes place after the victim has

arrived abroad, Moldovan law enforcement cannot

prosecute these cases at all; only the destination

country can prosecute.



58. (SBU) We do not see the presence of large

international networks recruiting in Moldova and

therefore would expect that Moldovan law

enforcement's most frequent successes would be

against direct and not agency traffickers. The

likelihood of modernizing the Moldovan law

enforcement institutions to the point that they

could successfully penetrate and eliminate most or



CHISINAU 00000083 013.2 OF 037





all of these small, personalized networks is

extraordinarily low. Law enforcement agencies in

the United States and Western Europe struggle to

eliminate such problems themselves.



59. (SBU) However, the government's failure to

undertake prosecution of a government official

allegedly complicit in trafficking remains a

problem, and contributed to Moldova's placement on

Tier Three in 2008. However, we cannot prove that

there are any high-level officials complicit in

trafficking in either the current or previous

governments.



60. (SBU) Corruption continued to pervade all

sectors of Moldovan government and society.

Although there are no hard numbers on the extent

to which government officials are complicit in

trafficking crimes, there were reports from

victims that some border guards and police

officers have been complicit in the crime or have

taken bribes to turn a blind eye to such

activities. Most of these reports were limited to

low-level officials. In 2009, the CCTIP reported

two cases of attempted bribery of its officers,

which resulted in the opening of a criminal case

against the suspects.



61. (SBU) The GOM's many efforts against TIP

contrast with the apathy shown by left-bank

Transnistrian authorities, especially at the

higher levels of administration, to the NGOs that

assist with anti-trafficking efforts.



62. (SBU) Ref A Question 26 D. To what extent

does the government systematically monitor its

anti-trafficking efforts (on all fronts--

prosecution, victim protection, and prevention)

and periodically make available, publicly or

privately and directly or through

regional/international organizations, its

assessments of these anti-trafficking efforts?



63. (SBU) In 2009, the GOM introduced a report

providing a consolidated narrative analysis

showing its efforts and its results in

prevention, protection, prosecution, and

incarceration, which it made available to the

international community. However, this report

still lacks comprehensive statistical analysis.

The creation of the CCTIP reflects a government

effort to have a more centralized and more

systematic approach to carrying out and monitoring

its anti-trafficking efforts. We believe that the

new GOM's changes, particularly the placement of

the NCCTIP under a senior cabinet member, with

numerous ministries and agencies coordinating

efforts, and the establishment for the first time

of a full-time Secretariat for the NCCTIP, will

begin to improve matters.



64. (SBU) Ref A Question 26 E. What measures has

the government taken to establish the identity of

local populations, including birth registration,

citizenship, and nationality?



65. (SBU) Citizenship is derived from one's

parent(s). Registration of birth is free of charge

for all citizens. In April 2009, the government

began enforcing a new law that simplified birth

registration procedures by establishing civil

registration offices within maternity hospitals

which issue birth certificates before the mother

and newborn are discharged from the hospital.

Prior to its abolition of the practice on November

25, the government issued optional, free-of-charge



CHISINAU 00000083 014.2 OF 037





ID cards for newborns, if parents requested them.



66. (SBU) Ref A Question 26 F. To what extent is

the government capable of gathering the data

required for an in-depth assessment of law

enforcement efforts? Where are the gaps? Are

there any ways to work around these gaps?



67. (SBU) The GOM has frequently expressed its

inability to present TIP statistics in a manner

that shows the disposition of cases through all

stages of the penal process, from initial

investigation to final incarceration. The

relevant GOM agencies should be able to track TIP

cases at each stage, from the opening of

investigation to final incarceration, note how

many cases proceed to the next stage, and how many

do not, and for what reasons. The need is

particularly acute at the final stage, that of

identifying how many go to trial for trafficking

offenses, how many are convicted (for what

particular offenses),how many "drop out" (because

of acquittal, flight from country, etc.),what

sentences are given, and which individuals are in

prison and for how long (minus amnesties and other

"get-out-of-jail" processes.) See paras. (5-11).



68. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 A. Existing Laws

against TIP: Does the country have a law or laws

specifically prohibiting trafficking in persons

both for sexual exploitation and labor? If so,

please specifically cite the name of the law(s)

and its date of enactment and provide the exact

language [actual copies preferable] of the TIP

provisions. Please provide a full inventory of

trafficking laws, including non-criminal statutes

that allow for civil penalties against alleged

trafficking crimes (e.g., civil forfeiture laws

and laws against illegal debt). Does the law(s)

cover both internal and transnational forms of

trafficking? If not, under what other laws can

traffickers be prosecuted? For example, are there

laws against slavery or the exploitation of

prostitution by means of force, fraud, or

coercion? Are these other laws being used in

trafficking cases?



69. (U) In 2005, Parliament passed a new law to

address comprehensively all aspects of the crime

of trafficking. In 2007, the government made a

series of efforts to implement the law. The IOM

reported that the MSP had provided staff and

facilities to assist victims of trafficking. In

2009, the government allocated 608,800 Moldovan

Lei (approximately USD 50,700) from the state

budget to fund the activities of the Center of

Assistance and Protection of TIP victims and

potential victims. The Mid-Term Expenditures

Framework for 2009-2011 provides for GOM

allocations of 575,600 Lei for 2010 and 618,200

Lei for 2011 to fund the Center's activities.



70. (U) In June 2005, Parliament passed an

amendment to the Law on Employment and Social

Protection, which now allows all categories of

vulnerable youth from 16 to 18 years of age

(graduates of residential institutions, orphans,

children without parental care, children from one-

parent families, victims of trafficking, disabled

persons, persons released from penitentiaries and

beneficiaries of rehabilitation institutions) to

receive government benefits. Before this

amendment, children between the ages of 16 and 18

were no longer covered by the educational and

housing services of the Ministry of Education, but

were not yet entitled to receive the benefits



CHISINAU 00000083 015.2 OF 037





provided by the Ministry of Economy, such as

unemployment or vocational training.



71. (U) Trafficking in persons was criminalized

under Moldovan law in August 2001. In 2005,

amendments to the Criminal Code made the victim's

consent to being trafficked irrelevant. In

addition, the anti-trafficking legislation was

complemented by passage of a comprehensive law on

the prevention and combating of trafficking in

persons that came into effect in December 2005.

The government worked closely with the

international community on the law, which was

studied and approved by the OSCE and the Council

of Europe. The law includes a definition of

trafficking that is fully consistent with the

Palermo Protocol. The law exempts victims from

criminal prosecution for illegal acts committed

during the trafficking experience, without

preconditioning this exemption on the victim's

willingness to cooperate with law enforcement

authorities, as the previous legislation

stipulated. The law also institutes a "reflection

period" of 30 days, during which time a victim can

decide whether he/she will cooperate with law

enforcement in any criminal proceedings against

his/her traffickers. Furthermore, the law

establishes the obligations which central and

local public authorities carry out with regard to

combating trafficking and assisting victims of

trafficking. For example, the Ministry of Foreign

Affairs and European Integration has been

appointed as the main governmental agency

responsible for coordinating the repatriation of

victims.



72. (U) The articles in the current criminal code

on trafficking in persons and trafficking in

children include the following provisions. (Note:

The Law on Preventing and Combating Domestic

Violence was enacted on March 18, 2008 taking

effect six months later on September 18, 2008.

End note.)



Begin text:

Article 165. Trafficking in human beings

comprises

(1) The recruitment, transportation, transfer,

concealment or receipt of a person, with or

without his/her consent, for the purpose of

commercial or non-commercial sexual exploitation,

for forced labor or services, for begging, for

slavery or similar conditions, for use in armed

conflicts or criminal activities, for the removal

of human organs or tissues committed by:

a) the threat of physical or mental violence not

dangerous to the personQs life and health,

including kidnapping, the seizure of documents,

and servitude for the purpose of paying a debt,

the amount of which was not set within a

reasonable limit, as well as through the threat of

disclosure of confidential information of the

family of the victim or of other persons, both

individuals and legal entities;

b) deception;

c) the abuse of vulnerability or abuse of power,

giving or receiving payments or benefits to get

the consent of a person controlling another

person;

shall be punished by imprisonment for 5 to 12

years with the deprivation of the right to hold

certain positions or to practice certain

activities for 2 to 5 years, whereas a legal

entity shall be punished by a fine in the amount

of 3000 to 5000 conventional units with the

deprivation of the right to practice certain



CHISINAU 00000083 016.2 OF 037





activities or the liquidation of the legal entity.



(2) The same actions committed:

a) by a person who previously committed an act set

forth in par. (1);

b) against two or more persons;

c) against a pregnant woman;

d) by two or more persons;

e)by an official or a high-ranking official;

f) with violence dangerous to the personQs life,

physical or mental health;

g) with torture, inhumane or degrading treatment

aimed at ensuring the personQs subordination, or

with the use of rape, physical dependence, or a

weapon;

shall be punished by imprisonment for 7 to 15

years with the deprivation of the right to hold

certain positions or to practice certain

activities for 2 to 5 years, whereas a legal

entity shall be punished by a fine in the amount

of 5000 to 7000 conventional units with the

deprivation of the right to practice certain

activities or the liquidation of the legal entity.



(3) The actions set forth in par. (1) or (2):

a) committed by an organized criminal group or by

a criminal organization;

b) that cause severe bodily injury or a mental

disorder, or the death or his/her suicide;

shall be punished by imprisonment for 10 to 20

years with the deprivation of the right to hold

certain positions or to practice certain

activities for 3 to 5 years, whereas a legal

entity shall be punished by a fine in the amount

of 7000 to 9000 conventional units with the

deprivation of the right to practice certain

activities or the liquidation of the legal entity.



(4) The victim of trafficking in human beings

shall be exempted from criminal liability for any

crimes committed by him/her in relation to this

procedural status.



Article 206. Trafficking in children

1) The recruitment, transportation, transfer,

harboring, or receipt of a child, as well as

giving or receiving payments or benefits to obtain

the consent of the person who exerts control over

the child for the purpose of:

a) commercial or non-commercial sexual

exploitation in prostitution or a pornographic

industry;

b) exploitation by forced labor or services;

b9) practicing begging or other base purposes;

c) exploitation in slavery or in conditions

similar to slavery including illegal adoption;

d) participating in armed conflicts;

e) participating in criminal activities;

f) removing human organs or tissues;

g) abandonment abroad;

h) sale or purchase;

shall be punished by imprisonment for 8 to 12

years with the deprivation of the right to hold

certain positions or to practice certain

activities for 2 to 5 years, whereas a legal

entity shall be punished by a fine in the amount

of 3000 to 5000 conventional units with the

deprivation of the right to practice certain

activities or by the liquidation of the legal

entity.



(2) The same actions involving:

a) physical or mental violence, the use of weapons

or the threat of their use;

b) sexual abuse and violence;

c) the abuse of authority or the childQs



CHISINAU 00000083 017.2 OF 037





vulnerability, the threat of disclosure of

confidential information to the childQs family or

to other persons;

[Letters d),e) excluded by Law No. 235-XVI dated

08.11.2007, in force as of 07.12.2007]

f) the removal of human organs or tissues;

shall be punished by imprisonment for 10 to 15

years with the deprivation of the right to hold

certain positions or to practice certain

activities for 2 to 5 years, whereas a legal

entity shall be punished by a fine in amount of

5000 to 7000 conventional units with the

deprivation of the right to practice certain

activities or by the liquidation of the legal

entity.



(3) The actions set forth in par. (1) or (2):

a) committed by a person who has previously

committed the same actions;

b) committed against two or more children;

c) committed by an official or by a high-ranking

official;

d) committed by an organized criminal group or a

criminal organization;

e) causing severe bodily injury or mental disorder

of the child or his/her death or suicide;

f) committed against a child aged under 14,

shall be punished by imprisonment for 15 to 20

years with the deprivation of the right to hold

certain positions or to practice certain

activities for 3 to 5 years or with life

imprisonment, whereas a legal entity shall be

punished by a fine in the amount of 7000 to 9000

conventional units with the deprivation of the

right to practice certain activities or by the

liquidation of the legal entity.



(4) A victim of trafficking in children shall be

exempted from criminal liability for any crimes

committed by him/her in relation to this

procedural status.



73. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 B. Punishment of Sex

Trafficking Offenses: What are the prescribed and

imposed penalties for the trafficking of persons

for commercial sexual exploitation, including for

the forced prostitution of adults and the

prostitution of children?



74. (U) In December 2005, the Criminal Code was

amended to allow the prosecution of those who

organize illegal migration. In addition, Moldova

has criminal code articles on forced labor,

slavery and slavery-like conditions, illegal

transport of children out of the country (art. 207

CC),and forced removal of organs or tissues to be

used in transplant operations (art. 158 CC).

(Note: The Kidney Foundation of Moldova reported

that, according to its knowledge, 32 people were

trafficked from Moldova for organ retrieval in

2007. Updated data for 2008 are not yet

available. IOM reported five cases of trafficking

for organ retrieval in 2008 and one case in 2009

(a male victim who was trafficked in 1999),among

victims assisted by IOM. End note.) In 2007,

authorities used these anti-trafficking articles,

and preexisting anti-trafficking laws, in criminal

cases. They also targeted suspected traffickers

with criminal charges of pimping and document

forging. All of these laws cover both internal

and external trafficking.



75. (SBU) To adjust Moldovan criminal legislation

to European standards, the Moldovan Criminal Code

was amended in December 2008. According to the

amendment Law, effective May 24, 2009, detention



CHISINAU 00000083 018.2 OF 037





terms for trafficking in persons were reduced for

each paragraph of Article 165 (Ref. par. 58):



--Par. (1) from 7-15 to 5-12;

--Par. (2) from 10-20 to 7-15;

--Par. (3) from 15-25 to 10-20;

--Life imprisonment was excluded.



76. (SBU) Ref A Question 27C. Punishment of Labor

Trafficking Offenses: What are the prescribed and

imposed penalties for labor trafficking offences,

including all forms of forced labor? If your

country is a source country for labor migrants, do

the government's laws provide for criminal

punishment--i.e. jail time for labor recruiters

who engage in recruitment of workers using

knowingly fraudulent or deceptive offers with the

purpose of subjecting workers to compelled service

in the destination country? If your country is a

destination for labor migrants (legal/regular or

illegal/irregular),are there laws punishing

employers or labor agents who confiscate workers'

passports or travel documents for the purpose of

labor trafficking, switch contracts without the

worker's consent as a means to keep the worker in

a state of compelled service, or withhold payment

of salaries as means of keeping the worker in a

state of compelled service?



77. (U) The Moldovan Criminal Code under the

Trafficking in Persons section also defines "the

recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring

or receipt of a person for the purpose of labor

exploitation or services, in slavery or similar

conditions." Moreover, Moldova as a source

country incriminates forced or bonded labor and

slavery and conditions similar to slavery as

separate distinctive crimes and provides for jail

time. Hence, if a person is charged with

trafficking in persons for forced labor, besides

trafficking charges the labor recruiter may face

additional charges of forced labor or slavery.

Upon sentencing, the courts cumulate the penalty

prescribed for trafficking in persons (minimum:

five years of imprisonment and maximum: 20 years

of imprisonment) with the one prescribed for

forced labor (minimum: fine or three years of

imprisonment and maximum: ten years of

imprisonment).



78. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 D. What are the

prescribed penalties for rape or forcible sexual

assault? (Note: This is necessary to evaluate a

foreign government's compliance with TVPA Minimum

Standard 2, which reads: "For the knowing

commission of any act of sex trafficking, the

government of the country should prescribe

punishment commensurate with that for grave

crimes, such as forcible sexual assault (rape)."

End Note)



79. (U) The Moldovan Criminal Code stipulates that

the penalty for rape or forcible sexual assault

ranges from three years of imprisonment up to life

imprisonment, when the crime is committed in

aggravating circumstances. For trafficking in

persons, the lowest penalty is five years of

imprisonment, which is a longer jail term than the

minimum penalty for rape (three years of

imprisonment). The highest penalty for

trafficking is 20 years, while the highest penalty

for rape, in exceptionally grave circumstances,

including the death of the victim, is life

imprisonment. According to the criminal statute,

both crimes are considered as exceptionally grave

and the penalties prescribed for trafficking are



CHISINAU 00000083 019.2 OF 037





commensurate with forcible sexual assault.



80. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 E. Law Enforcement

Statistics: Did the government take legal action

against human trafficking offenders during the

reporting period? If so, provide numbers of

investigations, prosecutions, convictions, and

sentences imposed, including details on plea

bargains and fines, if relevant and available.

Please note the number of convicted trafficking

offenders who received suspended sentences and the

number who received only a fine as punishment.

Please indicate which laws were used to

investigate, prosecute, convict, and sentence

traffickers. Also, if possible, please

disaggregate numbers of cases by type of TIP

(labor vs. commercial sexual exploitation) and

victims (children under 18 years of age vs.

adults). What were the actual punishments imposed

on persons convicted of these offenses? Are the

traffickers serving the time sentenced? If not,

why not?



81. (SBU) In 2009, CCTIP released statistics

regarding the number of cases opened, number of

cases sent to the courts, and number convictions

that carry penalties:



--Number of cases opened: TIP Q185; Trafficking in

children Q 21; Taking children out of the country

illegally Q 21; Pimping Q 152; Illegal migration

137;



--Number of cases sent to court: TIP Q 102;

Trafficking in children Q 11; Taking children out

the country illegally Q 12; Pimping Q 114; Illegal

migration - 75.



82. (SBU) The PGO reported that in 2009, trial

courts tried 53 TIP cases against 66 individuals,

of whom 39 were sentenced to imprisonment; 18 were

placed on probation; four were fined; and five

were acquitted. For the same period trial courts

tried four cases on child trafficking, including

four individuals, who were sentenced individually

to imprisonment. These decisions may be subject

to appeal in higher courts. Four sentences were

delivered as a result of plea agreements.



83. (SBU) PGO reported that in 2009, courts

downgraded seven cases from trafficking in persons

to less serious offences; five to pimping; one to

forced labor; and one to begging. As a result of

disagreements with court decisions (including

convictions, downgrading, acquittals),prosecutors

appealed 15 court decisions.



--Number of convictions that carry penalties

reported by MOJ: for trafficking in persons Q 60

persons (11 of which were the result of plea

bargaining) in 57 criminal cases. For Trafficking

in children Q five persons (of which two were a

result of plea bargaining) in eight criminal cases

persons were sentenced to imprisonment from seven

to 20 years. (Note: These sentences were not

necessarily from cases opened this year, and given

the length of time necessary to prosecute a case,

were more likely cases from previous years. The

judgments were final and irreversible, and not

subject to appeal. The PGO keeps statistics on

all judgments, including preliminary judgments

which can later be dismissed or overturned on

appeal. The MOJ collects statistics on final and

irreversible judicial decisions. End note).



84. (SBU) The MOJ reported that 131 persons



CHISINAU 00000083 020.2 OF 037





convicted of trafficking in persons (art. 165) and

12 persons convicted of trafficking in children

(art. 206) are currently serving irrevocable

imprisonment sentences. Eleven suspects in TIP

cases and one suspect in trafficking of children

are under preventive arrest awaiting criminal

prosecution.



85. (SBU) The CCTIP and MOI units closed down 40

networks of trafficking and illegal migration in

2009, including nine networks of sexual

exploitation (five from Turkey, one form UAE, one

from Greece, one from Cyprus, and one of internal

trafficking),18 networks that organized illegal

migration, six networks of illegal transportation

of children, and seven networks of external

pimping.



86. (SBU) The GOM carried out oversight on the

lawfulness of orders (in 2007 and the first seven

months of 2008) which refused the initiation of

criminal proceedings, and terminated criminal

proceedings. Refusal to initiate cases occurred

in 54 cases, and termination occurred in 41 cases.

No evaluation of the propriety of these actions

has been provided. No reports of such activity

were made in 2009.



87. (SBU) On June 20, 2008, the Chisinau Court of

Appeals sentenced Alexandru Covali (alias Shalun)

to 21 years imprisonment. Prosecutors

successfully argued that from 2001 to 2006 Covali

created a criminal organization which operated on

the territory of Moldova, Romania, Ukraine,

orchestrating a broad network of human

trafficking, trafficking in children, and pimping.

According to the prosecutors, the recruitment of

the victims was carried out on Moldovan territory,

mainly in Transnistria. Victims were transported

to Chisinau, where they were sheltered in

specially prepared houses and apartments. Covali

remains in jail.



88. (SBU) On December 27, 2006, Moldovan citizen

Ion Gusin was convicted of trafficking in persons

and sentenced to 22 years in jail for his role as

pimp and translator for the foreign sex tourist,

U.S. citizen Anthony Bianchi. (See paras. 119,

165, and 173.) Gusin moved children around

Moldova for abuse by this perpetrator. The case

is notable for the successful prosecution of a

case of internal trafficking, and for the strong

cooperation offered to the USG by the GOM.



89. (SBU) On April 11, 2008, the Supreme Court of

Justice sentenced Turkish citizen Mustafa Istemez

to 23 years of imprisonment for trafficking women

from Moldova as part of a criminal network, which

was active 2001-2004. At least 20 young women

were trafficked through this channel. The

criminal case was opened in 2004 by CCTIP

officers. Istimez remains in jail.



90. (SBU) On October 29, 2009, a Chisinau court

sentenced Alexandr Plohotniuc, residing in the

breakaway province of Transnistria, to seven years

of imprisonment for attempting, as part of a

criminal network, to traffic a Ukrainian woman to

Turkey for sexual exploitation under the pretense

that the woman would work there as a shop

assistant.



91. (SBU) On March 12, 2009, a Chisinau court

sentenced Brian Deacon, a U.K. citizen, to seven

and a half years of imprisonment for sexual

molestation of children in Moldova. According to



CHISINAU 00000083 021.2 OF 037





prosecutors, Deacon, who came to Moldova as a

consultant for a private company, approached

children from vulnerable families and subjected

them to noncommercial sexual exploitation. During

a search of his house, images of child pornography

were found in his computers. Prosecutors

requested that the judge convict Deacon of child

trafficking and sentence him to 22 years of

imprisonment. However, the case was downgraded to

actions of a sexually perverse character.

Prosecutors have appealed the sentence.



92. (SBU) On March 10, 2009, the Chisinau Court of

Appeals sentenced a young woman to six years,

eight months of imprisonment for trafficking a

woman to Turkey.



93. (SBU) On February 9, 2009, a Cantemir court

sentenced Gorceag Violeta and Botusneanu Cristian

to ten years of imprisonment for trafficking a

woman to Turkey.



94. (SBU) On June 24, 2009, a Chisinau Court

sentenced a young woman to ten years of

imprisonment for trafficking two minors to Turkey.



95. (SBU) On July 8, 2009, the Court of Appeal

sentenced Marin Cernei to seven years of

imprisonment for trafficking two young women to

the Russian Federation. After the prosecutor

intervened, the Court of Appeals upgraded this

case from conviction for pimping to trafficking in

persons.



96. (SBU) On October 21, 2009, a Chisinau Court

sentenced Ala Slobozian and Alexandru Slobolian to

15 years of imprisonment, Mihail Bondarenco to 13

years of imprisonment, Ion Acris to ten years of

imprisonment, and Iacov Tricolici to eight years

of imprisonment for trafficking five Moldovan

women in 2002-2003 to Israel, Turkey and UAE for

sexual exploitation.



97. (SBU) Ref A Question 25 F. Does the

government provide any specialized training for

law enforcement and immigration on identifying and

treating victims of trafficking? Or training on

investigating and prosecuting human trafficking

crimes? Specify whether NGOs, international

organizations, and/or the USG provide specialized

training for host government officials.



98. (SBU) The Police Academy has included a

regular segment on trafficking in its curriculum

developed in conjunction with the NGO La Strada.

A trafficking segment was included in educational

plan for 2009-2012. In 2009, the Academy

organized seven training courses on trafficking

for MOI staff. The MOI organized 11 seminars and

training sessions on trafficking for its employees

in 2009.



99. (SBU) In February, March, and August 2009, the

European Union Border Assistance Mission (EUBAM)

organized working sessions on enhancing the

effectiveness of law enforcement in preventing and

combating trafficking in persons, with the

participation of the CCTIP and Border Guard

Service. In March, CCTIP hosted a working

session, supported by EUBAM, with the

participation of officers from Moldova, Slovakia,

Ukraine, Italy and Austria, to augment

international capabilities to prevent crimes

pertaining to illegal migration of minors. In

March, CCTIP organized a working session with NGOs

dealing with assistance to victims of human



CHISINAU 00000083 022.2 OF 037





trafficking. In May, CCTIP together with IOM,

MSPFC, the Center for Assistance and Protection of

VoTs from Chisinau and United Nations Fund for

Population (UNFPA),organized a training program

"Protection and Empowerment of the Victims of

Human Trafficking and Domestic Violence in the

Framework of the National Referral System."



100. (SBU) In June, the French Embassy, in

partnership with IOM, organized an International

Conference "Children and Teenagers, Victims of

Trafficking in Persons," with the participation of

experts from Moldova (including CCTIP officers),

Ukraine, Croatia, Bulgaria, France, Romania,

Slovenia, Hungary, Bosnia & Herzegovina, as well

as IOM, OSCE and UNICEF. In July, the Chisinau

Municipality Department for Child Protection, in

partnership with the NGOs Woman for a Contemporary

Society and Save the Children, with the support of

the Chisinau Mayoralty and the Local Public

Authority of Emilia Romagna region, Italy,

organized a seminar "Prevention of Child

Trafficking in Ukraine, Republic of Moldova and

Italy." In November, CCTIP, in partnership with

the Center for Combating Trafficking in Women,

organized the seminar "Strengthening Capacities of

Law Enforcement Bodies in Combating TIP" in

Chisinau, Causeni, and Ungheni, with the

participation of police officers dealing with

trafficking related offences.



101. (SBU) The U.S. Embassy provided three

training courses to officers of the CCTIP,

prosecutors, and MOI officers in 2009:



--Two training sessions on Legal Fundamentals of

Combating Trafficking in Persons in the Republic

of Moldova in March and June. The course

presented to investigators and prosecutors the

status of laws and regulations that govern

investigation and prosecution process of counter-

trafficking process and other associated crimes



-- A roundtable dealing with victim-witnesses and

the unique role of the psychologist in addressing

victim's needs as well as facilitating better

cooperation between the victim-witnesses and law

enforcement in August in Balti.



102. (SBU) In 2009, IOM, with OSCE support,

organized 11 monthly Social Partnership Round

Tables between NGOs active in the social

protection field, local authorities, GOM

representatives and international organizations

active in the country. Nine took place in

Transnistria. To support active NGOs, IOM

implemented a small grants program which included

an organizational development capacity building

program and provided for expansion and

consolidation of a partnership network. Further,

IOM organized job training sessions for

multidisciplinary teams within the NRS in the

identification and referral of TIP victims and at-

risk persons for 175 newly recruited social

assistants at the municipal and community level.

From June to September, 2009, IOM offered

technical assistance to the MSP in an initial

capacity building program for social assistants.



103. (SBU) In May 2009, OSCE organized a training

program in the basic methodology, necessary

abilities, and concepts for providing of

assistance and protection to trafficked persons,

consolidation of cooperation between actors of the

National Referral System, for CCTIP and PGO

officials, and improved coordination and activity



CHISINAU 00000083 023.2 OF 037





among law enforcement and social workers.



104. (SBU) In 2009, in partnership with the United

Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC),the

OSCE Mission supported a project aimed at

improving the skills of judges and prosecutors in

TIP cases at the National Justice Institute, which

included three training programs and the drafting

of a specialized curriculum on combating

trafficking for the National Institute of Justice.

The OSCE also organized, in partnership with the

Children, Communities, Families (CCF Moldova) NGO,

a roundtable on child pornography to identify

problems, challenges and ways to address this new

phenomenon in Moldova.



105. (SBU) In 2009 La Strada organized:



--270 seminars in secondary schools located in

rural/remote areas for over 5,700 persons under an

agreement concluded with the Ministry of

Education;



--a national media awareness campaign on the

vulnerability of labor migrants, especially women,

to exploitation. The campaign included two video

spots broadcast on national TV channels (over

1,000 minutes)and billboards placed on major

national roads, posters and other printed

materials distributed mostly in rural areas (over

15,000 copies);



--debriefings for 81 journalists from national and

local newspapers and radio stations;



--debriefings for 60 police officers from various

police commissariats on issues of social

protection of trafficked persons, and disseminated

information about La Strada's tools such as its

mobile intervention team and mediation services;



--debriefings for representatives of the

Department of Consular Affairs under the Ministry

of Foreign Affairs and European Integration

(MFAEI) on the identification and repatriation of

trafficked persons; trained the staff of the Call

Center set up by the MFAEI concerning migrants'

protection and assistance to trafficked persons;



--the fifth Annual Workshop on concerns in working

with trafficked persons and potential victims of

trafficking Q exchange of good practices in

partnership with the Ministry of Labor, Social

Protection and Family (MLSPF) for 20 specialists

in social protection as well as members and/or

leaders of the multidisciplinary teams from 23

raions;



-- 20 seminars for 230 representatives of local

public administration in an effort to inform them

of new trends of human trafficking and assistance

infrastructure available for trafficked persons;



--a continuing training initiatives in partnership

with the U.S. Embassy in Moldova, the National

Institute of Justice, and the OSCE Mission to

Moldova for law enforcement officers in the area

of identification of trafficked persons,

conducting investigative interviews with

vulnerable witnesses and victims, and protection

and fair treatment. Over 130 police officers,

prosecutors and judges participated in this

program.



106. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 G: Does the

government cooperate with other governments in the



CHISINAU 00000083 024.2 OF 037





investigation and prosecution of trafficking

cases? If possible, provide the number of

cooperative international investigations on

trafficking during the reporting period.



107. (SBU) In 2009, EUBAM conducted the

international operation NICONI to combat TIP and

illegal migration, with the participation of CCTIP

officers. As a result, seven criminal networks

were detected and 13 criminal cases opened. In

March, a MoldovanQAustrian operation on illegal

migration was launched under EUBAM auspices.

EUBAM maintains cooperation in TIP combating

through a permanent working group (WG 1) with

participation of the main actors in the area.

EUBAM supports international and national

investigation, mentors and assists its partners,

initiates and facilitates the constant exchange of

information and operational meetings, and

functions as a link between the partners and EU

law enforcement agencies. At least one Joint

Border Control Operation is planned for 2010. To

enhance cooperation between Moldovan and Ukrainian

law enforcement in fighting human trafficking,

CCTIP and Moldovan Border Guards Service detached

liaison officers to Odessa to ensure an efficient

and timely exchange of information. During the

reporting period, CCTIP carried out 17

international operations with Italy, Ukraine,

Morocco, Romania, Poland, and Slovenia. As a

result of cooperation with law enforcement bodies

of Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, and Italy, six

suspects were apprehended and extradition

procedures are in progress. A total of 15

criminal cases were opened for trafficking-related

crimes as a result of international operations,

including three cases of trafficking to Turkey.



108. (SBU) The Government's investigation of

trafficking is largely limited to low- and mid-

level crimes. Although the law on operative

investigators was amended in February of 2004 to

expand investigators' ability to work undercover

and to use advanced techniques such as electronic

surveillance, investigators have not yet taken

full advantage of this authority and did not use

the techniques to follow investigations up the

chain to apprehend high-level or governmental

targets. Mitigated punishment for cooperating

suspects is available to prosecutors under current

Moldovan law, but the procedure is used largely to

dispose of uncontested cases rather than as an

investigative tool.



109. (SBU) Following the provisions of the Letter

of Agreement on Narcotics Control and Law

Enforcement signed in 2001 between the USG and the

GOM, the USG has renovated the CCTIP, installing

specially designed office furniture, and modern

computer hardware and software. The U.S. Embassy

has developed a comprehensive training plan for

CCTIP staff, which includes interview and

interrogation techniques, task and strike force

management, ethics and public corruption,

information technology training, officer safety

and survival, and crime scene management.



110. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 H. Does the

government extradite persons who are charged with

trafficking in other countries? If so, please

provide the number of traffickers extradited

during the reporting period, and the number of

trafficking extraditions pending. In particular,

please report on any pending or concluded

extraditions of trafficking offenders to the

United States.



CHISINAU 00000083 025.2 OF 037







111. (SBU) Persons who are charged with

trafficking in other countries can be extradited

only on the basis of an international treaty to

which the Republic of Moldova is a party or on

terms of reciprocity according to a judicial

decision. Although such treaties do exist between

Moldova and many countries, there have been no

extraditions for trafficking cases. The PGO

reported that during 11 months of 2009, it made

four requests for extradition of foreign nationals

under prosecution for trafficking: three to the

Russian Federation and one to Ukraine. Citizens

of the Republic of Moldova and persons who have

been granted political asylum by the Republic of

Moldova cannot be extradited from the country, if

they have committed the crime abroad but are

subject to criminal liability according to the

Moldovan criminal and criminal procedure statutes.



112. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 I. Is there evidence

of government involvement in or tolerance of

trafficking, on a local or institutional level? If

so, please explain in detail.



113. (SBU) Though most government officials are

committed to fighting TIP, there have been

allegations of individuals complicit, and in

summer 2008 the GOM gave details of several cases

on which it promised follow-up. See para. 174

for the latest update.



114. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 J. If government

officials are involved in trafficking, what steps

has the government taken to end such complicity?

Please indicate the number of government officials

investigated and prosecuted for involvement in

trafficking or trafficking-related criminal

activities during the reporting period. Have any

been convicted? What sentence(s) was imposed?

Please specify if officials received suspended

sentences, or were given a fine, fired, or

reassigned to another position within the

government as punishment. Please indicate the

number of convicted officials that received

suspended sentences or received only a fine as

punishment.



115. (SBU) On June 11, 2008, the Anticorruption

Prosecutor's Office resumed the investigation of

the alleged involvement of government officials

(former CCTIP Director Bejan and other CCTIP

officers) in trafficking. The prosecutors are

attempting to elicit the cooperation of

individuals sentenced in the Covali case and

tracing the illegal assets originating from

Covali's criminal actions in order to determine

the nexus between Covali's trafficking activities

and the corruption of government officials. The

resumption of this high profile investigation was

widely announced via press conferences and website

postings. During 2008, the PGO negotiated with

the Superior Council of Magistrates to lift the

immunity of two trial court judges and prosecute

them. The magistrates are suspected of

unreasonably downgrading the charges in two

trafficking cases and imposing on the defendants

(traffickers) penalties more lenient than

prescribed by the law. In November 2009, CCTIP

sent a request to the PGO for a reexamination of

Bejan case. In December 2009, the PGO reported

that the case of Bejan and other CCTIP officers

(Alexandru Artin, Eduard Sibov and Vladimir

Istrati) is under criminal investigation by the

Anti-Corruption Prosecutors' Office and the Center

for Combating Economic Crimes and Corruption. The



CHISINAU 00000083 026.2 OF 037





PGO will inform us on any decision.



116. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 K. For countries

that contribute troops to international

peacekeeping efforts, please indicate whether the

government vigorously investigated, prosecuted,

convicted and sentenced nationals of the country

deployed abroad as part of a peacekeeping or other

similar mission who engaged in or facilitated

severe forms of trafficking or who exploited

victims of such trafficking.



117. (SBU) No reports existed of Moldovan

peacekeepers (demining contingents) in Iraq

participating in such activities. Moldovan

peacekeepers no longer work in Iraq, but a

contingent will be sent to Afghanistan.



118. (SBU) Ref A Question 27 L. If the country

has an identified problem of child sex tourists

coming to the country, what are the countries of

origin for sex tourists? How many foreign

pedophiles did the government prosecute or

deport/extradite to their country of origin? If

your host country's nationals are perpetrators of

child sex tourism, do the country's child sexual

abuse laws have extraterritorial coverage (similar

to the U.S. PROTECT Act) to allow the prosecution

of suspected sex tourists for crimes committed

abroad? If so, how many of the country's

nationals were prosecuted and/or convicted during

the reporting period under the extraterritorial

provision(s) for traveling to other countries to

engage in child sex tourism?



119. (SBU) Of the 61 investigations launched in

2008 by CCTIP under the trafficking in children

statute, one high-profile case involved U.S.

citizen Anthony Bianchi and Moldovan citizen Ion

Georghe Gusin. On the basis of this case, the

CCTIP launched 17 criminal investigations under

the child trafficking, violent acts of sexual

nature, forced sexual relations, and perverse acts

articles of the Criminal Code. The CCTIP worked

jointly with U.S. officials in the investigation

and prosecution of Bianchi, who was charged under

a 2003 U.S. federal law that makes it illegal for

Americans to commit sexual crimes against children

in foreign countries. Eight of the victims from

Moldova and four CCTIP officers traveled to

Philadelphia in July 2007 to testify in a U.S.

federal court, before an American jury, against

Mr. Bianchi. Bianchi was convicted in 2007. On

January 7, 2009, Judge Bruce Kaufman of the

Eastern District Court denied Bianchi's appeal of

his conviction. According to an ICE release,

Bianchi, faced 36 years of imprisonment, a

mandatory minimum sentence of five years, five

years supervised release, a USD 3 million fine and

a USD 1,200 special assessment. In May 2009,

Anthony Bianchi was sentenced to 25 years in

prison.



120. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 A. What kind of

protection is the government able, under existing

law, to provide for victims and witnesses? Does

it provide these protections in practice?



121. (SBU) In September 2008, the GOM enacted a

new witness protection law, which included many

provisions recommended by the U.S. Embassy. The

law clearly distinguishes the activities pertinent

to protection of witness and actions meant to

assist victims of crimes. It also provides for

the creation of a separate witness protection

division under the Ministry of Interior.



CHISINAU 00000083 027.2 OF 037





According to the law, the prosecutor leading the

investigation is the ultimate decision maker on

whether to place witnesses under a protection

program and/or to refer victims to special social

and medical care facilities. In addition to a

special Division on Witness Protection based on

the law, the CCTIP has a special unit for witness

and victim protection and assistance. This unit

protects and encourages victims to assist in the

investigation and prosecution of trafficking

cases. The main purpose of the unit is to provide

for physical and psychological protection. Simple

measures include court security, access to police,

police escorts, keeping the victims constantly

informed of the status of the legal proceedings,

access to counseling, and protection while

participating in criminal procedures. After the

trial, the victims will be referred to the Center

operated by the MSP in order to have access to

legal and social support services, including post-

trial counseling, to address any trauma caused by

testifying.



122. (SBU) In the period 2006-2008, there were 12

persons under protection as part of a criminal

proceeding: seven persons in 2006, four in 2007,

and one in 2008. In 2009, CCTIP reported two

victims for whom protection measures were applied.



123. (SBU) According to the MOI, the main

impediment to proper implementation of the Law on

Witness Protection and administration of the

program is underfunding and poor logistical

capacities. On November 2-11, the Embassy, in

partnership with UNODC, brought in two experts on

witness protection, who conducted a comprehensive

assessment of the witness protection system and

the framework for implementation of the new law

protection law. The report with recommendations

to GOM is expected by February 2010.



124. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 B. Does the country

have victim care facilities (shelters or drop-in

centers) which are accessible to trafficking

victims? Do foreign victims have the same access

to care as domestic trafficking victims? Where

are child victims placed (e.g., in shelters,

foster care, or juvenile justice detention

centers)? Does the country have specialized care

for adults in addition to children? Does the

country have specialized care for male victims as

well as female? Does the country have specialized

facilities dedicated to helping victims of

trafficking? Are these facilities operated by the

government or by NGOs? What is the funding source

of these facilities? Please estimate the amount

the government spent (in U.S. dollar equivalent)

on these specialized facilities dedicated to

helping trafficking victims during the reporting

period.



125. (SBU) Moldova currently does not have active

arrangements with other countries on the provision

of temporary residence status for foreign-national

victims of trafficking.



126. (SBU) In December 2006, the Rehabilitation

Center of IOM was transferred to government

ownership and responsibility. The Center of

Assistance and Protection of TIP victims and

potential victims is a state institution

(established as of June 11, 2008) that is managed

by the MLSP. The Center provides temporary

placement, legal and medical assistance,

psychological counseling, social support, and

vocational training. The Center is supported by



CHISINAU 00000083 028.2 OF 037





the state budget (608,800 Lei, approximately USD

50,700, was allocated for the Center in 2009) and

IOM, according to the Cooperation Agreement

concluded between IOM and the MSP. In 2010, the

Center will receive 575,600 Lei from the state

budget and 550,000 Lei for the repatriation of TIP

victims and children left without parental care

abroad. The Center serves at the primary contact

point in Moldova for repatriated victims,

including children.



127. (SBU) The MLSP reported that in 2008-2009, 91

TIP victims and migrants in difficult conditions

were repatriated. According to a GOM decision of

August 2008, the MLSP is responsible for all

activities required for the organization and

initiation of repatriation procedures for non-

accompanied minors identified in foreign

countries. In 2009, the MLSP, in partnership with

IOM and/or Terre des Hommes Foundation, organized

20 repatriation missions of children and

repatriated 42 unaccompanied minors (25 from the

Russian Federation, eight from Romania, eight from

Ukraine, one from Sweden).



128. (SBU) In addition to the Center, there are

ten maternal and youth centers providing

assistance to victims. These centers are

supported by local public authorities and NGOs.

In 2009-2011, the MLSP will provide budget support

for two regional multi-functional community

centers Q one in Balti and one in Cahul Q offering

assistance to TIP victims and potential victims.

These allocations were provided according to the

National Program on Creation of Integrated Social

Services for 2008Q2012 and adopted in December

2008. The state budget provided for 1,175,300 Lei

(approximately USD 97,900) for 2009 and 1,203,800

Lei (approximately USD 100,300) for 2010 for the

two centers. IOM will cover operating costs for

the next seven years. Legal, medical, and

psychological services are mainly provided by

international organizations and NGOs. The Center

of Assistance and Protection of TIP victims and

potential victims is the only comprehensive victim

assistance facility in the country. Various

ministries have cooperated with NGOs and

international organizations to support their

assistance efforts. For example, the Ministry of

Interior signed a Memorandum of Collaboration with

IOM to ensure that victims of trafficking

repatriated through IOM are not apprehended by

border guards and transferred to the Ministry of

Internal Affairs for interrogation, but allowed to

go straight to the Center of Assistance and

Protection of TIP victims and potential victims.



129. (SBU) The Center for Temporary Placement of

Minors in Chisinau has 39 employees (security,

psychological and educational),who deal with

1,800 cases a year of lost, abandoned,

repatriated, or arrested children aged three to

18, and children who run away from orphanages. It

has beds for 24 children. In addition to the

Center, 27 smaller centers, capable of housing up

to ten children, operate in municipalities. On a

cases-by-case basis, the Center reunites children

with their biological families, places them in

orphanages, or returns them to orphanages. It

provides full-time education to those who stay at

the Center (a stay can last from several hours to

six months),and provides a valuable services for

vulnerable young people who would otherwise be on

the streets. The Center reported no victims of

child trafficking in 2009 among its beneficiaries.





CHISINAU 00000083 029.2 OF 037





130. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 C. Does the

government provide trafficking victims with access

to legal, medical and psychological services? If

so, please specify the kind of assistance

provided. Does the government provide funding or

other forms of support to foreign or domestic NGOs

and/or international organizations for providing

these services to trafficking victims? Please

explain and provide any funding amounts in U.S.

dollar equivalent. If assistance provided was in-

kind, please specify exact assistance. Please

specify if funding for assistance comes from a

federal budget or from regional or local

governments.



131. (SBU) See paras. 126 and 128 above.



132. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 D. Does the

government assist foreign trafficking victims, for

example, by providing temporary to permanent

residency status, or other relief from

deportation? If so, please explain.



133. (SBU) In 2009, CCTIP reported one foreign

trafficking victim Q a Ukrainian citizen. The

victim was offered temporary placement in the

Center of Assistance and Protection of TIP victims

and potential victims in Chisinau.



134. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 E. Does the

government provide longer-term shelter or housing

benefits to victims or other resources to aid the

victims in rebuilding their lives?



135. (SBU) See paras. 70, 126, and 128 above.



136. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 F. Does the

government have a referral process to transfer

victims detained, arrested or placed in protective

custody by law enforcement authorities to

institutions that provide short- or long-term care

(either government or NGO-run)?



137. (SBU) In 2008, the National Referral System

for Protection and Assistance of Victims and

Potential Victims of Trafficking (NRS) began

operating in 16 raions and two municipalities. In

an effort to improve the legal framework and the

institutionalization process of the NRS, the

Parliament adopted the Strategy and the Action

Plan of the NRS on protection and assistance to

TIP victims and potential TIP victims on December

5, 2008. On February 10, 2009, the Strategy was

published in the Official Monitor of Moldova. The

Strategy established cooperation between competent

state institutions and national and international

organizations that are engaged in the prevention

and combating of human trafficking. The NRS has

trained local specialists in skills such as direct

contact with the victims, their reintegration into

the family and the society, and the prevention of

stigma usually attributed to TIP victims in

society. The multidisciplinary teams have been

supplied with separate phone lines, internet

access, computers, and stationery. Some were also

provided with furniture, and some coordinators of

multidisciplinary teams are attending computer

courses. In 2009, the NRS was extended to 23

raions, two municipalities, and one town. In

partnership with IOM and UNFPA, a training session

on strengthening the capacities of social workers

through NRS was offered in one raion in

Transnistria.



138. (SBU) The Center of Assistance and Protection

of TIP victims (CAPTIP) is the first contact point



CHISINAU 00000083 030.2 OF 037





in Moldova for repatriated victims, including

children, at which they receive temporary lodging

and legal, medical, psychological, and social

assistance. If there is a need for a special

service for the beneficiaries, these persons are

referred to NRS for assistance. During 2009, 133

TIP victims (49 more than in 2008, which reported

84 victims) and 308 potential TIP victims (287 in

2008) were referred by NRS. Since 2006, 292

victims and 582 potential victims have been

referred through the NRS. On March 27, 2008, the

Ministry of Social Protection signed a Memorandum

of Cooperation with UNDP, Ministry of Public

Administration, IOM, and the NGO Association of

Psychologists Tighina to establish a partnership

in order to implement the UNDP Project "Better

Opportunities for Women." This project hopes to

establish an eight-bed center and shelter in

Transnistria for TIP victims.



139. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 G. What is the total

number of trafficking victims identified during

the reporting period? (If available, please

specify the type of exploitation of these victims

Q e.g. "The government identified X number of

trafficking victims during the reporting period, Y

of which were victims of trafficking for sexual

exploitation and Z of which were victims of

nonconsensual labor exploitation.) Of these, how

many victims were referred to care facilities for

assistance by law enforcement authorities during

the reporting period? By social services

officials? What is the number of victims assisted

by government-funded assistance programs and those

not funded by the government during the reporting

period?



140. (SBU) In 2009, IOM Moldova provided

assistance to 159 TIP victims: 152 adults (132

women and 20 men) and seven children (six girls

and one boy). Most of the victims (56.6 percent)

were trafficked for sexual exploitation, 27.7

percent for labor exploitation, 5.7 percent for

begging, and 1.2 percent for combined

exploitation. The operations and efforts of law

enforcement agencies resulted in the

identification of 13 persons (8.2 percent) before

they were taken out of Moldova, thus preventing

their exploitation in the destination countries.

Out of the total IOM caseload, more than 130 TIP

victims were referred through the National

Referral System and received assistance from the

local public authorities. The Center of

Assistance and Protection of TIP victims provided

assistance to 130 TIP victims and 138 potential

victims in 2009. 210 beneficiaries have been

provided temporary placement. 65 beneficiaries

received legal assistance. The CAPTIP received

state funding in 2009. CCTIP reported, that in

2009 189 victims identified by the CCTIP (compared

to 271 identified in 2008) participated in

criminal proceedings. The CCTIP also noted a

growing number of victims willing to cooperate

with state law enforcement authorities. (Note:

out of 189 victims, 33 percent were trafficked in

2009, 28 percent in 2008 and 39 percent in the

period of 2002Q2007. End Note).



141. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 H. Do the

government's law enforcement, immigration, and

social services personnel have a formal system of

proactively identifying victims of trafficking

among high-risk persons with whom they come in

contact (e.g., foreign persons arrested for

prostitution or immigration violations)? For

countries with legalized prostitution, does the



CHISINAU 00000083 031.2 OF 037





government have a mechanism for screening for

trafficking victims among persons involved in the

legal/regulated commercial sex trade?



142. (SBU) See paras. 137-138.



143. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 I. Are the rights of

victims respected? Are trafficking victims

detained or jailed? If so, for how long? Are

victims fined? Are victims prosecuted for

violations of other laws, such as those governing

immigration or prostitution?



144. (SBU) Most NGOs agree that the government's

treatment of victims continued to improve over the

last few years and particularly in 2008 and 2009,

as seen in the coordinated efforts to assist

victims overseas, bring them home safely, and

rehabilitating them. The counter-trafficking law

exempts victims from prosecution for illegal

actions committed during the trafficking

experience. Victims also are not fined for

violations of immigration laws. Moreover, the new

draft Code of Administrative Offences expressly

provides that the persons engaged in practicing

prostitution against their will are exempted from

administrative liability.



145. (SBU) Ref A, Question 28 J. Does the

government encourage victims to assist in the

investigation and prosecution of trafficking? How

many victims assisted in the investigation and

prosecution of traffickers during the reporting

period? May victims file civil suits or seek

legal action against traffickers? Does anyone

impede victim access to such legal redress? If a

victim is a material witness in a court case

against a former employer, is the victim permitted

to obtain other employment or to leave the country

pending trial proceedings? Are there means by

which a victim may obtain restitution?



146. (SBU) The government encouraged victims to

assist in the investigation and prosecution of

trafficking. The CCTIP reported that it ensured

the security of TIP victims returning to the

country; provided psychological and pedagogical

counselors for victims (including children) who

were being interviewed at La Strada; referred

victims, "from the moment of identification," to

competent state authorities for assistance; and

minimized the number of hearings in which a victim

must participate. In 2009, 36 of 159 victims

assisted by IOM testified against traffickers. At

the same time, La Strada expressed concerns about

children victims, noting that no special

protection measures have been extended to

children; no special interviewing rooms exist;

children were often interviewed as many as ten

times, often being confronted by the alleged

trafficker; interviews were often carried out by

police with no special training, on ad hoc

schedules, often for several hours, and without

the presence of legal counsel. La Strada

concluded by stating that risk assessments for

minors had to be performed by NGOs and that NGO

recommendations for the protection of victim-

witnesses were "randomly and rarely considered."



147. (SBU) Under Moldovan law, a victim can obtain

restitution through criminal proceedings, but only

if the victim requests it. The draft National

Anti-trafficking Action Plan for 2010-2011

provides for the establishment of legal provisions

to ensure access of victims to restitution from

traffickers and/or the state. The draft also



CHISINAU 00000083 032.2 OF 037





provides for modification of criminal law to

ensure that the seizure of a trafficker's property

by the state can take place only after the victim

has obtained restitution.



148. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 K. Does the

government provide any specialized training for

government officials in identifying trafficking

victims and in the provision of assistance to

trafficked victims, including the special needs of

trafficked children? Does the government provide

training on protections and assistance to its

embassies and consulates in foreign countries that

are destination or transit countries? What is the

number of trafficking victims assisted by the host

country's embassies or consulates abroad during

the reporting period? Please explain the type of

assistance provided (travel documents, referrals

to assistance, payment for transportation home).



149. (SBU) In addition to regular training

sessions conducted by CCTIP during 2009 for its

newly employed officers (at the CCTIP, at three

regional subdivisions, and at raion police

stations),the CCTIP organized:



--a working session in March, with NGOs dealing

with assistance to victims of human trafficking;



-- a training program "Protection and Empowerment

of the Victims of Human Trafficking and Domestic

Violence in the Framework of the National Referral

System" in May, in partnership with IOM, MSPFC,

Center for Assistance and Protection of Victims of

Trafficking from Chisinau and UNFPA;



-- three seminars on "Strengthening Capacities of

Law Enforcement Bodies in Combating TIP" in

November, in partnership with the Center for

Combating Trafficking in Women, in Chisinau,

Causeni, and Ungheni with the participation of

police officers dealing with trafficking-related

offences.



150. (SBU) In 2009, the NRS supported local

specialists, who attended a series of training

courses conducted by the MLSP. The participants

learned about direct contact with the victims and

their reintegration into family and society, and

the prevention of any possible stigma usually

attributed to TIP victims in society.



151. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 L. Does the

government provide assistance, such as medical

aid, shelter, or financial help, to its nationals

who are repatriated as victims of trafficking?



152. (SBU) See paras. 126, 128, and 138.



153. (SBU) Ref A Question 28 M. Which

international organizations or NGOs, if any, work

with trafficking victims? What types of services

do they provide? What sort of cooperation do they

receive from local authorities?



154. (SBU) IOM and La Strada are the principal

organizations working with victims of trafficking.

They provide relief, rehabilitation, and

counseling. Several NGOs provide half-way houses,

typically with six to ten beds, for victims of

trafficking. Ref B describes positive reports

from IOM and La Strada on the types and level of

cooperation offered by the GOM.



155. (SBU) Ref A Question 29 A. Did the

government conduct anti-trafficking information or



CHISINAU 00000083 033.2 OF 037





education campaigns during the reporting period?

If so, briefly describe the campaign(s),including

their objectives and effectiveness. Please

provide the number of people reached by such

awareness efforts, if available. Do these

campaigns target potential trafficking victims

and/or the demand for trafficking (e.g., "clients"

of prostitutes or beneficiaries of forced labor)?

(Note: This can be an especially noteworthy

effort where prostitution is legal. End Note.)



156. (SBU) The National Employment Agency of the

Ministry of Economy continued to provide

vocational training free of charge to at-risk

persons and returned trafficking victims referred

by IOM. It distributed information to potential

victims about the job market and taught them how

to prepare a resume, how to apply for a job, and

how to handle a job interview, in addition to

informing them about their rights and about job

placement opportunities. In an effort to increase

public awareness related to trafficking in human

beings, CCTIP, with local and international NGOs

and IOs, developed and conducted seminars for high

school students, teaching staff from schools and

universities, priests, local authorities and local

law enforcement officials.



157. (SBU) In 2009, the CCTIP organized and

conducted nine seminars on the prevention of human

trafficking for local public authorities in summer

camps and at the Peace Corps Office in Chisinau.



158. (SBU) In 2009, the CCTIP hosted approximately

ten discussions of the problem of human

trafficking, including for foreign journalists,

broadcast on radio and TV channels such as

Moldova1, PRO TV, NIT, TV 21, TV7, and local media

outlets. During the reporting period, the CCTIP

issued 40 press releases on the MOI web page and

to local media and conducted press conferences on

a monthly basis, reporting to NGOs and interested

members of the public on the activity of the

Center.



159. (SBU) Representatives of the MLSP

participated in the monthly Technical Coordination

Meetings on Combating Trafficking in Persons

hosted by OSCE.



160. (SBU) Ref A Question 29 B. Does the

government monitor immigration and emigration

patterns for evidence of trafficking?



161. (SBU) In 2004, Pasager, an automated system

to monitor borders, was implemented with U.S.

support, and is being used by the Border Guards

Service to, among other things, combat trafficking

in persons, by monitoring and recording

information on individuals crossing the border.

Passport scanners are used to detect counterfeit

documents. Information introduced into the system

using one of the three entry modules for road,

air, and railway traffic is stored in a central

database. At Chisinau airport, in cooperation

with the Ministry of Information Development, the

Border Service implemented real-time ID control

for Moldovan citizens. In addition, the system

has a mechanism for reviewing the most recent

entry records and travel history of Moldovan

citizens.



162. (SBU) Ref A Question 29 C. Is there a

mechanism for coordination and communication

between various agencies, internal, international,

and multilateral on trafficking-related matters,



CHISINAU 00000083 034.2 OF 037





such as a multi-agency working group or a task

force?



163. (SBU) The National Referral Mechanism

coordinates prosecution, protection and prevention

of TIP. See para. 31. The National Anti-

trafficking Committee (NCCTIP) has the lead role

in reviewing the government's anti-trafficking

efforts, and further steps to strengthen its

coordination role were taken in 2009. See paras.

39-40. GOM cooperated with other governments on

investigation and prosecution of TIP cases. The

results depended in part on the other country's

response. Moldova is a member of SECI and SEEPAG,

the prosecutors' corollary organization to SECI.

On February 8, 2006, the government ratified an

agreement with Turkey to combat trafficking as

part of a broader effort to fight illegal drug

trafficking, international terrorism, and other

organized crime.



164. (SBU) On June 20, 2007, the government signed

a bilateral agreement with Slovakia on combating

organized crime. In 2007, the government began

negotiations on bilateral agreements on combating

TIP with the UAE. At an April 26-27, 2007,

meeting, senior law enforcement officials from

Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine negotiated a

trilateral agreement to establish a headquarters

in Romania. In 2009 GOM began negotiations on

bilateral agreements on protection and

repatriation of children with Italy and on

repatriation of children and adults in difficult

conditions with the Russian Federation. No new

agreements were signed in 2009.



165. (SBU) Between 2005 and 2007, CCTIP, all

Moldovan agencies collaborating in the CCTIP task

force, the Embassy, and the Immigration and

Customs Enforcement Agency, cooperated in a joint

international criminal investigation of American

citizen Anthony Mark Bianchi. Bianchi was charged

under a 2003 federal law that makes it illegal for

Americans to commit sexual crimes against children

in foreign countries. The two-year investigation

resulted in Bianchi's August 2007 conviction at

the Federal Court in Philadelphia on all counts of

sexual crimes against minors committed overseas.

The crime included a TIP charge levied in Moldova

against a local national who moved children to

facilitate Bianchi's acts in Moldova.



166. (SBU) Parliament ratified:

--the Council of Europe Convention on Combating

Trafficking in Human Beings, on March 30, 2006;

--the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish

Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and

Children, supplementing the UN Convention against

Transnational Organized Crime, on February 17,

2005;

--ILO Convention 182 concerning the Prohibition

and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the

Worst Forms of Child Labor in February 2002;

--ILO Convention 29 in October 1999 which entered

into force in March 2001; and

--ILO Convention 105 in March 1993.



167. (SBU) With U.S. Government support, GOM

opened in January 2005, the multi-agency Center

for Combating Trafficking in Persons (CCTIP),

which includes the International Anti-trafficking

Analytical Bureau and the Victim/Witness

Protection Program. CCTIP is a task force, drawn

from numerous GOM ministries, of prosecutors,

investigators, analysts, and support personnel

created to combat trafficking in persons. The



CHISINAU 00000083 035.2 OF 037





CCITP was officially inaugurated in April 2007.

The U.S. Embassy has installed specially designed

office furniture, modern IT hardware, and computer

software. The CCTIP has a fully-equipped modern

conference room, and is being used as a training

facility for many courses, seminars, and

international round table discussions.



168. (SBU) Ref A Question 29 D. Does the

government have a national plan of action to

address trafficking in persons? If the plan was

developed during the reporting period, which

agencies were involved in developing it? Were

NGOs consulted in the process? What steps has the

government taken to implement the action plan?



169. (SBU) On March 26, 2008, the third National

Plan to Prevent and Combat Trafficking in Human

Beings (National Plan). The plan, for 2008-2009,

was passed by the Government. The drafting of the

National Plan was coordinated by the National

Committee, with input from other GOM agencies and

NGOs. The National Plan will improve the

legislative framework, create an implementing

mechanism for existing and adopted laws, raise the

awareness of the risks of being trafficked and

illegal migration, decrease the vulnerability of

children to being trafficked, ensure social

assistance, extend international co-operation,

increase the number of cases and convictions for

human trafficking, offer recovery to the victims

of trafficking, and ensure non-discriminatory

treatment. Local multi-disciplinary anti-

trafficking committees have also been established

in all 32 districts of Moldova. A draft National

Plan for 2010-2011 was outlined in November 2009,

in consultation with ministries and governmental

agencies, NGOs and international organizations and

is expected to be approved in January 2010 by a

government decision, after clearance by all

ministries involved.



170. (SBU) Ref A Question 29 E: Required for all

Posts: What measures has the government taken

during the reporting period to reduce the demand

for commercial sex acts?



171. (SBU) Prostitution is not criminalized, but

it is an administrative offense punished by 30

days of detention if practiced repeatedly.

Clients are not punished. Pimping is criminalized

and the law is enforced with penalties ranging

from two to seven years of jail time. La Strada

reported that the GOM actions targeting demand

reduction were focused on prostitution: raiding

saunas and hotels, and checking the identification

and purpose of visiting foreigners, especially

those accompanying women after ten P.M. During

the period of June 12-20, 2009, CCTIP, MOI and the

Special Forces Brigade "Fulger" checked ten night

clubs, to identify cases of practicing

prostitution, pimping, and illegal overstay of

foreign citizens. As a result, 12 administrative

cases were opened, and violators were fined a

total of 17,400 Lei (USD 1,400).



172. (SBU) Ref A Question 29F. Required of all

Posts: What measures has the government taken

during the reporting period to reduce the

participation in international child sex tourism

by nationals of the country?



173. (SBU) See paras. 72, 119, and 165. The GOM

exhibited exemplary, active, and full cooperation

with the USG on the child sex tourism case of

Anthony Bianchi. The assistance, which



CHISINAU 00000083 036.2 OF 037





contributed materially to Bianchi's conviction,

helped send a message to predators that Moldova

was not a safe place for them. In May 2009,

Anthony Bianchi was sentenced to 25 years in

prison.



174. (SBU) On January 30, 2009, prosecutors gave

us follow up information on GOM pledges made in

June 2008 to investigate the complicity of GOM

officials in trafficking. GPO officials

investigating the complicity case of former CCTIP

Deputy Director Ion Bejan are conducting extensive

investigations of the records of Bejan and his co-

workers in police offices, Ministry of Interior

files (personnel records, operative files, and

informants' reports),PGO and judicial reports,

and other GOM offices which record citizen

complaints. So far, they have found no evidence

of complicity. In addition, convicted trafficker

Alexandru Covali (see paras. 69 and 86),who

originally implicated Bejan, has been shown to

have lied about having access to his GPO file

(with Bejan's assistance),and to have lied about

turning over ownership of a car to Bejan's son.

Since June, 2008, Covali has refused to talk to or

cooperate with GOM prosecution authorities

regarding his alleged connections to the Bejan

case.



175. (SBU) The PGO reported no cases of

involvement of public officials in trafficking in

persons (art. 615) or child trafficking (art. 206)

in 2009. In 2008, prosecutors gave us information

on these other alleged complicity cases against

government employees:



--On November 25, a mayor was condemned for

organizing illegal migration, and sentenced to

five years in jail. The PGO appealed the sentence

as too lenient. The former mayor is now in jail.



--The directors of two sports clubs, Armada and

Camelot, who were convicted of organizing illegal

migration, could not be convicted: the de jure

"victims" (who were de facto beneficiaries of a

scheme to get visas to the EU by means of

falsified membership in the clubs) filed

depositions, but had left Moldova before they were

able to testify in the trials.



--Two employees of the GOM-private sector joint

venture Gymnastic Federation forged documents to

attest to membership of other persons in the

federation. The head of the trampoline section

admitted his guilt and was fined 2,000 Lei (USD

190). The head of the rhythmic section, who also

was accused of coaching visa applicants for

interviews, is under prosecution at present.



--An employee of the National Philharmonic was

convicted of organizing illegal migration and

fined 2,000 Lei (USD 190). The judge accepted

mitigating circumstances, namely that she had

acted alone, and turned state witness against a

travel company. The PGO has appealed the sentence

as too lenient, and the appeals case is now

pending.



--An employee of the Ministry of Information

Development (which issues passports, birth

certificates, and national identity cards) was

convicted of illegally issuing documents, and

fined 2,000 Lei(USD 190). The PGO is appealing

the sentence as too lenient.



176. (SBU) Prosecutors also reported on:



CHISINAU 00000083 037.2 OF 037







--a case-law initiative which indicts

organizations as well as individuals, thus

permitting the investigation of company assets and

liquidation of companies used to organize

trafficking and illegal migration;



--effecting the adjournment of cases of illegal

migration when witnesses have gone overseas, in

order to avoid acquittal;



--increased use of letters rogatory to foreign

governments to pursue potential witnesses in

trafficking and illegal-migration cases;



--fast-tracking of criminal procedures (primarily

interviews and searches) in suspected trafficking

cases, before witnesses leave the country or

otherwise drop out of sight.



177. (SBU) Ref A Question 30 A. Does the

government engage with other governments, civil

society, and/or multilateral organizations to

focus attention and devote resources to addressing

human trafficking? If so, please provide details.



178. (SBU) In May 2008, the government signed a

memorandum on standard operating procedures

pertaining to alien smuggling and the assistance

of trafficking victims with the NGO community.

The parties involved are the Ministry of Interior,

General ProsecutorQs Offices, Ministry of Social

Protection, Family and Child, IOM, Center for

Combating Trafficking in Women, and La Strada.

See para. 128, 137-138, and 163-164.



179. (SBU) Ref A Question 30 B. What sort of

international assistance does the government

provide to other countries to address TIP?



180. (SBU) There are no records of any assistance

provided to other countries to address TIP by GOM.



181. (U) Post's TIP point of contact is Michael

Mates, +373 22 408486, email matesmj@state.gov.

Post is unable to estimate the total number of

hours of officer and FSN time devoted to gathering

the information and answering the 40 paragraphs of

questions in Ref A, whether indirectly (as part of

officer and FSN participation in anti-TIP

activities) or directly (in the collection of

specific information for and drafting of this

report),but notes that the effort involved

significant input from officers and FSNs of the

RSO, RLA, and P/E sections.



CHAUDHRY